The race for anti-obesity drugs hasn’t stopped yet

The race for easy diets is not over yet. The trend for drugs containing semaglutide, the active ingredient found in drugs such as Ozempic and Saxenda, is always in vogue, but at the moment there is no ban on off-label prescriptions yet. Because semaglutide, which makes you feel full, slows gastric emptying and therefore leads to significant weight loss, was not developed for healthy people wanting to lose weight, but is a necessary treatment for people with type 2 diabetes.

Thus, a few months after the birth of the phenomenon that began after stars, VIPs and influencers, especially American ones (including Elon Musk and Kim Kardashian) began flaunting the hidden properties of the drug from the rooftops, there was still no It is necessary to prevent the sale of the drug to those who simply want to lose weight. However, “the quantity is still lower than requested,” clarifies cantonal pharmacist Giovan Maria Zanini. Translation: There are those who still use it for weight loss, even if they do not have diabetes, but there are supplies available at the moment. And also because the provisions introduced in March and confirmed in July are still in force. That is: the dispensing of semaglutide in all forms and forms of release can be carried out only upon presentation of a prescription issued by a Swiss doctor. This is done to prevent or at least stop drug tourism from Lombardy.

So there was concern – it wasn’t really a hoax or over-alarmism – but the barrier put in place to prevent stock from running out on demand was holding. And at the moment there are no plans to introduce more draconian measures. Although the drug continues to be prescribed to those who do not have diabetes. “It is not prohibited to prescribe medications for unapproved indications,” Zanini clarifies, “but the doctor must be able to defend his choice, that is, to assert that semaglutide is necessary for the patient.” Therefore, full confidence in Swiss doctors. Who “in the vast majority of cases,” Zanini clarifies, “knows their patients.”

All this in the hope that sooner or later fashion will stop or lose its momentum. Or even that companies that make “miracle” drugs will start producing them in large quantities. The likelihood is not so remote, as the case of the Danish pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk showed. Which in a short time became the company with the highest capitalization in Europe, $424 billion, taking over the scepter from the French LVMH. The growth was made possible by the launch of Wegovy in the UK, Denmark, US, Norway and Germany. A drug that apparently contains the same “miracle” active ingredient – semaglutide. Which is so popular among VIPs and the super-rich of the planet.

Fashion, trends, phenomena. Today’s world seems to be globally oriented with lifestyles, news, and worries and fears at the speed of light. And when it comes to healthcare and healthcare, it creates dynamics that were unknown just a few years ago. “The current supply problem for semaglutide would most likely not exist in 10 to 15 years,” explains the cantonal pharmacist. In other words, those who produce Ozempic today, for example, would respond to demand much more quickly. And therefore there would be no need to put up barriers and rules to protect those who really need the medicine. So what has changed over the past decade? “What has changed is that companies no longer have the inventory they had in the past. Today they only produce what they sell. In short, the company’s planning has changed. Everything is thought out in the short term and that is why they are no longer in stock. Their deposits are now transported on trailers and in containers,” says Zanini.

Thus, today’s world is filled not only with increasingly interconnected and intertwined fashions and global problems that move very quickly from one part of the planet to another, but also with a structural shortage of medicines. Or rather, chronic, to use a health-related term. The shortage that “in the first year of Covid, in 2020,” recalls Zanini, “led, for example, to a crisis in the availability of flu vaccines. Everyone wanted it. Even those who have never done it.” In short, to cause an emergency today, all it takes is a break in the trend, but also anxiety, a new worry, a fear that was not there before.

So it is not uncommon, in fact, quite the contrary, it has become almost normal that over the past few years the authorities have had to intervene several times to “regulate the market”, waiting for requests to gradually return to normal. As we hope will soon happen today with semaglutide. “The measure we have taken so far, namely that the dispensing of semaglutide in all forms and formulations can only be carried out on presentation of a prescription issued by a Swiss doctor,” emphasizes the cantonal pharmacist, “proves to be sufficient to protect the domestic supply.”

True, limited supplies and constant shortages of drugs do not apply to all drugs. “In particular, there is a shortage of those with low added value rather than high-end ones,” Zanini points out. And here, too, it’s not just like that. In fact, more than one. “Take, for example, an antibiotic against cystitis, which today, because its patent has expired and it is under government pressure to reduce the cost of drugs, sells for the same price as a pack of chocolates. What company would be interested in selling a product at such a low price?” asks the cantonal pharmacist, already knowing the answer. Probably not many. Or almost none. Hence the shortage. Or a possible emergency if demand suddenly increases. This is why “it is important that at the level of the Federal Council,” Zanini continues, “we stop reducing prices, because at a certain point, what we get at the best price we get without having the drug.”

However, this is not the case for some drugs considered essential. Why does the state have reserves? “A few years ago the list of these drugs was very limited, but today we have gone from a list of a few lines to several pages.” However, being able to rely on more “prescribed” drugs also means increased costs. A scenario that is destined not to change in the future. Which will likely also lead to an increase in the number of drugs themselves.